Riding in an air bubble from the bottom of the ocean to New York isn't the most fun thing I've ever done. Throw in Clarisse and Chris blabbing all the way, and it just plain sucks. Well, not all the blabbing was boring.

Instead of a sword, Chris was using these magic revolvers that fired Celestial bronze bullets and reloaded when he spun them in his hand. He'd gotten them as a souvenir during Clarisse's assault on the weapons shipment.

"Gods, now that was a great day," he said, smiling.

"Oh wipe that look off you're face," Clarisse glared.

Chris spun the revolver in his hand. Clarisse place her hand on her sword hilt. I took several steps back. They both took a step closer to each other, hands not leaving their weapons. They took another step, and then another. Just before I decided it was time to push them apart, Clarisse let go of her sword and Chris dropped the revolver. What happened next made me look away. I groaned louder than I meant to, so they pulled apart.

"What are you looking at?" Clarisse asked me.

I quickly turned away from the two. "Nothing. Nothing at all."

Looking outside the air bubble transport we were using (hey it beat being magically teleported by the minor gods and Athena) I saw something that temporarily chilled my blood.

I exited the air bubble and drew my knife. On command, it extended into a full sword. I love having the powers of Hephaestus. How else could I have rigged the knife to extend into a sword when it registered my thought commands?

"Percy Jackson, son of the sea god, failure of Olympus," Oceanus greeted.

"Oceanus," I responded, "Titan of the sea, whack job of Mount Othrys."

"Watch the remarks boy," Oceanus warned. "Your daddy isn't here to protect you anymore."

The mention of my dad made me feel angry and guilty. He was being forced to hold up the sky on Mount Tam, and I had been in California for a portion of my road trip. Yet I hadn't gone to save him. Some hero I was. But I would save him soon, and right now I was going to make Oceanus eat his words.

"Don't you dare bring my father into this," I warned.

"Or what?" Oceanus scoffed.

"This," I said, and slashed a cut in his arm with my sword.

He staggered back surprised but not really hurt. He willed the currents to attack me, and I did my best to hold them back. It was no use, though. He had stronger control over the ocean. I was buffeted and tossed around by the currents. I had to level the playing field somehow.

With everything I had, I managed to slow the currents around me enough to swim for surface. I leaped out of the water and stood there. Walking on water rules. My friends swam to the surface, gasping for air.

"Sorry," I apollogized.

"Behind you!" Chris shouted.

I turned in time to get sucker-punched by Oceanus. I skidded across the water like a skipping stone. Gaining my balance back with a back flip, I shot toward Oceanus like I was a jet ski, skimming across the water without even taking a step. I turned sharply, and sent a crest of waves hitting him in the face. I stopped moving for a bit, and just stood there, goading Oceanus into making the next move.

"Come back here and fight coward!" Oceanus cried out in anger.

"Why don't you come out here and get me Barnacle Bitch?" I shot back.

Oh that got him mad. He sped forward just like I had, skimming across the water like a jet ski. As he approached, he drew a five foot long sword out of thin air. True I could do that too if I wanted, but using pure godly energies is liable to get me killed at this point. I waited for him to get closer. He closed the gap to thirty feet...then twenty...ten.

In one fluid motion, I dodged to the side and slice with my knife. A cut appeared on Oceanus's shoulder. He turned to face me, and I smiled.

"Care to try again?" I goaded.

Instead of attacking, he waved his hand. At first, nothing happened, but then a deep, loud call filled my ears. Something enormous leaped clear out of the water. It was a blue whale, fully grown at one hundred feet in length, weighing about one hundred and fifty tons. And it was flying right towards me, propelled by jets of water Oceanus controlled.

I braced my self and did something that amazed me. I caught the whale. With a cry a pure will, I stood back up to full height and hurled the whale back at Oceanus. I looked at my hands in time to see the red aura of Ares fading away. The whale hit Oceanus smack dab in the face. I lost track of him for a minute.

That was a big mistake. The water erupted next to me, and Oceanus shot out like a rocket, sword drawn. I spun around and parried his strike. I sped away on the water. Oceanus came after me. Our swords clashed again and again. It was like fighting while roller skating at high-speeds across the ocean. Oceanus turned sharply away, blinding me with the wave that hit me in the face. When my vision cleared, I saw the flash of his sword just before I went skipping across the water again.

I fired off several arrows while I still had the advantage of distance. Several hit their mark, getting an oof out of him every time. I grew a huge tree right out of the ocean floor, raising it until it breached the surface and surrounded it self around Oceanus. He twisted and writhed while the branches wrapped themselves around him. Calling on the power of Hephaestus, lord of the forges and fire, I sent a blast of flame at the tree, setting it ablaze and Oceanus with it. I huge column of water rose up, extinguishing the flame.

Oceanus advanced, still smoking from the fire. He raised his sword, but I reacted fast enough to slice his wrist and make him drop his sword. He sped backward, putting distance between me and him. Before I could start firing more arrows, he raised a huge tidal wave, about three hundred stories tall, halfway to Olympus, if it was still there.

I froze. Son of Poseidon or not, invulnerable or not, this was going to–

A crack filled the air, followed by five more. Six neat little bullet holes had appeared on Oceanus's face. In shock, Oceanus dropped the tidal wave on himself. I shot forward and, just as he saw me coming, sliced his head clean off. He wasn't dead, but he certainly wouldn't be bugging me for a while.

I stopped walking on water and casually swam back to Clarisse and Chris. Chris's revolver was still smoking. He spun it, and I heard a click indicating it had reloaded. We reached New York without any further complications.

But once we were in New York, things once again got complicated. The door of Orpheus now had Ladon himself guarding it. Clarisse drew her sword, but Chris stopped her. They both looked at me. I close my eyes and tried to make the Earth swallow Ladon whole. Instead, pain shot out from my chest, threatening to send me into a coma. I kept trying while the pain worsened. I started coughing up tainted ichor, but I kept trying, which probably only made things worse. Finally, just as I felt my lungs shriveling into nothing, the earth opened up a massive crack, and Ladon fell in. I closed the crack and collapsed, letting the pain consume me.

My heartbeat turned into a violent stab in my chest, my blood felt like venom and fire. My muscles had minds of their own, shaking in violent spasms one second and locking up with immobility the next. I eyes felt like they were being barbecued. I started hyperventilating. Sweat poured down my face. Somewhere in my head, I knew this was the end.

I spent most of my time in the tent my mom had set up for me, because I got tired of wearing my hat twenty-four seven. Athena visited from time to time, but as leader of the rebellion, she didn't have much free time. I guess today was one of those lucky days, because Athena walked in to pay me a visit.

"Hello Annabeth," she greeted.

"Hey," I replied.

"Everything alright?" she asked.

"I miss everyone," I admitted. "And what makes it worse is their right here in Typhon's Prison, and I can't go near them because they'll try to kill me."

"I see," she said. "So that's why you still use his sword."

In a reflex I'd inadvertently developed, my hand went to my pocket where Riptide was kept.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "When Percy went to Ogygia, he took my knife with him. I needed a new weapon, so I took Riptide."

"Oh really?" Athena asked. "And how exactly is that possible if the weapon always returns to Percy?"

That sent chills up my spine, because how I'd acquired Riptide was not my favorite memory. Besides, my mom probably already knew the answer. She was going somewhere with this, so I played along.

"When I...turned on Percy, he came so close to death it fooled the magic that linked him to Riptide. The connection was severed, so after Kronos took over I had Hecate manipulate the magic a bit so it returned to me," I explained.

"After which, Kronos tried to capture her," I added. "That's why she came here."

"Annabeth, you where Kronos's most important non-immortal servant. You could have had any weapon you wanted, yet you chose the sword. Why?"

"Because of her heart," someone else said.

We both turned to face Aphrodite, in all her depowered beauty. I gasped, because now Aphrodite knew that I was here. She didn't seem like she was mad at me or wanting to kill me though, so I guess she believed I was on their side now.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "I don't like Percy."

Aphrodite nodded. "You're absolutely right Annabeth," she paused.

We waited for a moment for her to continue. That was a big mistake. I should've just thanked Aphrodite for not killing me and excused her.

"You love him!" she shrieked happily.

"WHAT?" my mother and I shouted at the same time.

"Oh don't you even try to deny it," Aphrodite said. "An entire year you served Kronos. Then, Percy shows up, and poof, you defect to the good side. Coincidence?"

"Yes," I lied.

"Oh come on, if it weren't for Percy, you'd still be slicing up stray demigods and plotting your next act against the rebellion with Luke," Aphrodite said.

I was about to deny it, but she wasn't done yet.

"You're back in the right because the love of your life swooped in and showed you the error of your ways. Oh, this is sooooo romantic!" she squealed.

"The love of my–?" I stammered.

Oh why oh why did the goddess of love have to know I was back?

"Oh don't try to deny it even your mother knows it," she stated.

I looked at Athena, who looked away. Oh no. This isn't happening. I can't be in love with Percy. Because if I am, I'm not just forbidden by circumstances to see my best friend, I'm forbidden to see the one I love. And that thought was just heart breaking.

Athena put a hand on my shoulder. I must've looked sadder than I thought.

"Annabeth, if he has the powers of Aphrodite, he'll see that you really...enjoy his company. If it is that important to you, I think you should talk to him," she advised.

I laughed a little. My mom was still refusing to say Percy and love in the same sentence. So yes, I decided that once I got the chance, I would talk to Percy, and tell him everything.